My training camp/pre-season primer and roster predictions....db's & P's

We come to the biggest question mark on the team.. the db's have gone from a dominant unit to one of the worst in the league in short order... Gone is the unit that led the league in pass defense just a few short yrs. ago... decimated by free agency and father time, our pass defense has become one that journeymen qb's licked their chops to get at... The only thing keeping us from being the worst pass defense in the league was the presence of the historically awful saints and giants.. But there was a glimmer of hope late last season, as passing lanes became hard for qb's to find against us, and the secondary began playing better together as a unit.. Also, hope is coming in the form of a 2nd yr. ball hawk that redshirted his rookie season and a 1st rounder that has an extremely high ceiling.. The safeties are also seeing a huge competition at the ss position that I expect to be very hotly contested....
Almost an afterthought, the p position seems to be a revolving door.. Every yr. we are bringing in someone new in an effort to win the field position battle, and this yr., there will be yet another competition.. now let's take a look at the individual.

CB:
Willie Gay: Big play willie gay has become a fixture in the defensive backfield.. As opportunistic as they come.. Gay is a sure tackler, and an above ave. blitzer, and he seems to thrive in our defensive scheme.. He is, however, as prone to giving up the big play as he is making one... Very often, gay has saved a td or ended an offensive drive with a timely tackle or pass defensed... Not a threat to make a pro bowl, but still an invaluable part of what is being built here

Ross Cockrell: Still developing young cb that is finding a home in our secondary.. Good size and speed.. More of a zone guy than a one on one shut down man.. Cockrell will not frighten an opposing qb, but will make a play on the ball if it's in his area.. Much better defending intermediate routes than he is with the deep ball, and needs safety help if a pass is longer than 30 yds., but I don't believe he's reached his ceiling yet.. Fair tackler and will see his share of the field this yr.

Senquez Golson: Redshirted his rookie season, and is back to show everyone what we missed last season.. Golson is a pure ball hawk with hands that seem to stick to the ball.. Size is a concern, but he is not afraid to lay a hit on a ball carrier.. His strength will be in the slot, and it will be needed to combat the quicker passes that offenses employ in order to offset our pass rush... I am looking forward to finally seeing what this kid can do.

Artie Burns: Rookie with a truck load of upside.. Very raw, but his speed and athletic ability cannot be ignored... It is entirely unknown at this time how much of the field he will see in his rookie yr., but he will be lining up against Antonio brown on a regular basis.... AB will throw everything he has at burns, and if that doesn't get him ready quickly then nothing will.. I think we have a keeper here.

Doran Grant: 2nd yr. man that also has a lot of upside.. Opportunistic player with a nose for the ball.. good tackler that doesn't shy away from contact.. Should get a bit of field time in the dime

Donald Washington: Still young and has not had much chance to reach his full potential due to being stuck in a very deep secondary at kc.... Consistency has always been his biggest issue, as at times he can look like a shut down man, and at others he makes you hold your breath... Strong hitter with good speed.. It appears that adversity has brought out the best in him, and he appears ready to fight.... the competition here is going to be fierce

Al-haj Shabazz: Very large cb that comes to us from a small school background.. not particularly fast, but is good in run support.. His lack of speed will work against him though, and he will probably be an early cut

Montell Garner: Opportunistic player that likes to hit.. limited athletic ability though, and will struggle to get noticed at the next level... I don't see him making it to pre-season

S:
Mike Mitchell: Came into his own last season and started to show why the f.o. gave him that big contract.. Fierce hitter and quickly becoming a leader in the secondary.. his spot as our fs is secure for the foreseeable future.

Robert Golden: Forgotten man in the secondary, but got noticed again when pressed into action at ss.. Now he appears to have the inside track in the early competition.. Golden has played every position in our secondary and is as flexible as they come.. good special teamer and good tackler. The light seems to have come on.

Shamarko Thomas: Has all the athletic ability in the world.. a physical freak, and probably our strongest hitter and quite possibly the strongest pound for pound defender we have.. His problem has always been his head, as he's never quite gotten the technical aspects of the position down... Rumor has it that shark has been doing his homework though, and that he's now ready to be the player he was drafted to be.. Extremely high character player that has overcome such hard lifetime adversity that it's impossible not to root for him... If the head is there, then we will have a major player in the house.

Sean Davis: Rookie with some serious upside... His athletic ability will make it hard to keep him off the field if he knows his assignments... Ball hawk and hard hitter, that will make his presence felt early on special teams, and then will cause some fireworks in the ss competition

Ross Ventrone: Purely a special teams demon, that looks to once again be a victim of the numbers game

Jordan Dangerfield: Better in run support than he is against the pass... when he hits you, you feel it.. Another victim of the numbers game, but not before supplying his fair share of highlight reel hits

Ray Vinopal: Comes to us from the pitt panthers and knows the area.. Very good head on his shoulders, but limited physically... His local status will make him a fan favorite, but I don't expect him to go far with us.

Jacob Hagen: Big safety with excellent hands... A wild card in this s competition that could stick as he can play both safety spots... keep your eye on him

P:
Jordan Berry: Big footed aussie that had some consistency issues, but overall, was decent... Won a hard fought battle for the job last season, and faces stiff competition to keep the job again.. Will he be allowed to develop, or is the next man on the list going to be next man up..

Will Monday: Left duke with the highest punting ave. in school history.. A booming leg, and has very good directional skill with the ability to drop a punt in tight corners.. definitely one to watch


That concludes our look at the team in general...... I did not include long snapper as I simply believe that greg warren is it and competition is none.... Enjoy camp and pre-season on the stairway to 7

 

washington has a lot of skill as a safety too. maybe more so than corner, this will be interesting to watch. he and grant could get helmets with the ST's contributions they make. i think thats where these guys will be in competition. who will be the gunners? grant and davis? good stuff as always b&g. thanks bud.

 

Agree on Golson, much anticipation to see what he can provide.

Must have missed the Donald Washington pick up. Secondary battles will be fun to watch this preseason..

 

Depth is now no longer a concern considering that the secondary has some pedigree in it now with veteran presence. All that is left is see who will claim the 2nd spot considering that spot is wide open despite the fact that Golson and Washington have the edge but the former has never been in the Steelers system and the latter has yet to log in a snap.

 

This group should have the most competition of any other positions on the team. A starting safety & CB job should
be on the line? May the best man win. There are rumors circulating that Golson is again hurt. Not sure if this is true or not? This group will need coached up.
Boy if we could get above average play from this group, Steelers defense will be looking good. Go Steelers.

 

even if golson isn't ready, i feel better about this group. grant with a year under his belt and cockrell with a year in camp will be an improvement.

 

"Soft Tissue" injury. Not sure what it is exactly. Same goes for Dupree. Both stated they would be ready by the start of training camp.

 

Golson might be the most anticipated steeler to play this year... At least on defense. I expect Ladarius Green to get some attention on offense as well.

 

I disagree with Donald Washington ...... I know, I have him on my final 53 but that was my most agonizing decision ..... He was drafted in 09' and played out his rookie contract, was kept as an RFA but didn't make the final cut.... Out of football for two years then one year in CFL.... He had a good vertical but fresh out of college his 40 was 4.49: surely he's slowed a bit and being out of football 2 years hasn't helped .... His skill set or rather performance when on the field is barely noticeable with 1 pass defensed and zero int......
It's possible he can be a good story, become a NFL player again but I doubt it more and more....
Truth is I kept him on our 53 only due to numbers, I wanted more corners on the roster... If he does make the final cut, look for him to be replaced soon after by a surprise roster cut from another team....

Cajun

 

Him and Bud Dupree are vying for that spot. Essentially one could call this Senquez' "Rookie Year" due to the fact that he did not log in a single snap. Dupree is in line for that label due to him having not only an offseason to work on his craft but a consistent and quality staff helping him out (having James Harrison does not hurt either).

 

I agree Mac, I will be watching Grant closely. I watched him in training camp last year. I like his game.
I will also be watching Artie Burns a lot. These positions got to come thru if we are to get where we want to be.

 

i watched some of the first game against cinci from last year they had on the nfl net. . the one at our house. cockrell did a pretty good job matched up 1 on 1 with aj green. i think with the year under his belt and a camp under his belt this year, and add some added strength i've read he's added, cockrell could become a really good asset to have. if burns makes strides this year we could have 5 really good corners even without washington. i think he's going to via for more of the backup safety spot. the only way he sees the field is emergency duties if he even makes the team. a lot will depend on the shark.

 

We all watched Blake last year. Just saying...

 

Washington wont make the roster, he will be cut in camp, he was cut by a CFL team for cripes sake, his pro stats are as bad as it gets, what we signed him for in the first place puzzles me.....